General Motors has caught a lot of flak for not having Apple CarPlay or Android Auto in its electric cars. It decided to stop offering the smartphone-mirroring software back in 2023, forcing drivers to use GM’s own Android-based native infotainment system for stuff like navigation, phone calls, and music projection.
CarPlay and Android Auto are pretty much expected by buyers to be standard on any new car these days, so some people were pretty angry about the move. Others went as far as to develop a retrofit to get CarPlay running on some of GM’s new EVs, but it was quickly shut down by the company a few months later.
Neither of my cars has CarPlay, but I have to admit, I absolutely love using it whenever I’m driving my parents’ cars or press cars. It makes the experience a lot more pleasant and simpler, even if having to switch between the car’s native system and CarPlay isn’t “seamless,” as GM describes.
That’s why I was sad to see this news that GM plans to eventually drop Apple CarPlay and Android Auto across its entire lineup in the future—not just its EVs as previously planned. CEO Mary Barra revealed the news to The Verge in an interview with Nilay Patel. Here’s the relevant transcript:
Let me ask you the second part of that question again, because, again, we’re talking so much about the future, and I understand the argument about the future you’re making, but you still have the smartphone projection in the gas cars. Why is it still in the gas cars?
MB: A lot of it depends on when you do an update to that vehicle. When you look at the fact that we have over 40 models across our portfolio, you don’t just do this and they all update. As we move forward with each new vehicle and major new vehicle launch, I think you’re going to see us consistent on that. We made a decision to prioritize our EV vehicles during this timeframe, and as we go forward, we’ll continue across the portfolio.
So we should expect new gas cars will not have smartphone projection?
MB: As we get to a major rollout, I think that’s the right expectation. Yes.
When exactly GM plans to drop CarPlay and Android Auto from its lineup isn’t clear right now, with Barra hinting to The Verge that the move will likely coincide with its plans to roll out a new onboard computing platform in 2028, starting with the all-electric Escalade IQ. From The Verge:
The automaker is calling it a “full reimagining of how vehicles are designed, updated, and improved over time,” which it says will include “10 times more over-the-air software update capacity, 1,000 times more bandwidth, and up to 35 times more AI performance for autonomy and advanced features.” The new computing platform will be rolled out to both GM’s EVs and internal combustion engine vehicles, the company said.
Aside from having the latest and greatest software available, the computer will add stuff like Google’s Gemini AI as a voice assistant, and more importantly, GM’s Level 3 hands-free, eyes-off highway driving. This is a step up from the company’s Level 2 Super Cruise system, in that drivers will be able to take their eyes off the road in certain situations (the SAE officially calls this “conditional driving automation,” and it’s all very confusing).
Level 3 systems like this aren’t fully autonomous, of course, because they require the driver to be able to take control at any time. So don’t go buying a new GM vehicle thinking it’s going to drive you around like a Waymo. It’ll likely be something similar to Mercedes’ Drive Pilot, which is classified for use as a Level 3 system, but only in very limited sections of highways and at speeds under 40 mph.
If I had to choose between Level 3 autonomy and CarPlay, I think I’d take the latter every time. But maybe that’s because I just love driving, and I’m familiar with how CarPlay works. I’m sure with time, I’d get used to GM’s system if I owned a car of theirs without phone projection. But it’s nice just being able to hop in and immediately know what’s going on with regards to stuff like navigation and music. That’s one of the biggest draws for CarPlay—it’s the same no matter what you’re driving. And people love familiarity.
Top graphic image: General Motors
Welp. Wasn’t planning on a new (or not new) GM vehicle any time soon, but this kinda cements it.
Also if 2028 is the timeline, I foresee backtracking.
This is data control, nothing else.
When you do screen projection like CarPlay or AA, all the data remains in the source device (i.e. your phone) and the car manufacturer controls nothing of it. Data has a ton of value nowadays, especially considering where car infotainments are heading.
What did the SMS you got say? What meetings you have? What music you listen to? What places you frequent the most? In this day and age there’s no getting away from phones knowing all this, but I love that my cars ignore this stuff.
The wife’s XC40 Recharge has a Google OS which she uses instead of CarPlay/AA. All apps have to be locally stored and you have to log into them for it to work properly. Volvo now can have access to all data.
I have 4 very different cars myself and 3 of them have CarPlay. It’s amazing to jump from a modern BMW to a 25 year old Nissan and have the same interface everywhere. What GM and others ditching CarPlay miss out is this very important fact that a lot of people don’t have just 1 car or all cars from the same brand, so consistency is extremely important. I can’t install GM’s OS into my 50 year old Corolla.
This idea will go down in flames and I’m all here for it.
What the actual hell, GM? For the first time in my adult life, which has been quite a lengthy one, I was actually beginning to be impressed with your vehicles, and was actually considering a Bolt. And now you’re doubling down on your insistence on fighting what people want for technology? Jesus christ. I guess I may end up never buying a GM product after all.
The consumer based solution would be to offer all the greatness that GM thinks they can offer, but also have AA and Carplay. Make the experience with the GM UI so great that noone wants to use AA/Carplay. The problem is that GM would need to make the GM UI so great that noone wants to use AA/Carplay.
The very annoying thing about this decision is GM makes a wonderful android based interface that does a good chunk of what you need it to without pairing your phone BUT the moment you need notifications from your phone it frankly sucks. I have a escalade IQ loaner at the moment and it just plain sucks for that kind of stuff. Plus with carplay all the apps are on my phone and everything is loaded in and works without having to sign in yet again and what not.
Frankly, my wife’s lyriq is the ideal best of both. It has the google apps that work just fine and dandy and it has carplay/AA for those that don’t. This screams GM wanting our data too.
This I think is a key point. When I’m renting a car and get to peruse the aisle of vehicles, CarPlay is one of those “need to have” things since I don’t have time to learn a new system.
If I owned this vehicle I don’t think I’d miss CarPlay as long as the vehicle had a connected nav system. If map updates and traffic and the like aren’t included for at least 5 years though this really sucks… don’t give me a reason to put a magnetic phone dock on the dashboard of my fancy new car!
Unless they somehow knock a system that does the same thing CarPlay does out of the park, I don’t see looking at a GM that doesn’t come with it.
This is plain and simple enshittification. GM wants to charge you to do what you could previously do for free. Why let you mirror your own phone screen when they can charge you a monthly fee to let your car do it for you. That’s just stupid.
This is all crap.I don’t want freaking AI in my car. I just want to be able to change tracks and see my navigation screen.
My current car is an Equinox. It’s fine, but it is a boring driving appliance. If someone replaced it with any of million other roundish SUVish cars tomorrow, I wouldn’t notice or care. I’m going to be shopping for a car with AA when I buy next, not a GM.
I don’t mind their interface. The problem is that after 6 months of free trial, you have to pay $20/month for live traffic – even on a six figure Cadillac it’s not included for a reasonable amount of time. I’m not going to pay for that when I already get that info on my cell phone.
I like CarPlay, but I don’t completely blame GM for this. Apple has been trying to take over the whole dash and GM will have none of that and that’s completely fair. If Apple hadn’t overreached, GM might’ve been ok with CarPlay.
I see it differently. Yes, Apple was/is (?) developing a version that also does the main forward screen with your gauges. But is not “taking over the whole dash” as if Carplay was going to suddenly hijack your car. It’s a product being developed, that could be accepted or rejected by any manufacturer. Last I remember any reporting on it, it was something along the lines of only a few manufacturers showed any interest, and maybe one car (from Ferrari maybe? Porsche?) actually said they would use it.
Long and short of it, I think Apple is is free to develop a product that no one wants (Full Carplay Dashboard), and GM is free to develop another product that few people will want (No Carplay Dashboard). The risk is much bigger for GM.
I know people are Big Mad about this, and I kind of get it, but I also kind of don’t, but that may be a me problem. I acknowledge that I’m old school though.
My wife has a ’24 K5 that has CarPlay, and I admit it’s pretty slick. But let’s be honest, all it really does mostly is music and nav.
I’m not one of these people that has to have music going on all the time in parallel with my life. I don’t understand the need to have music always on at home, in the car, on the golf course (GAH!). I NEVER play music on the way to work in the morning, hello, I just woke up, and often I don’t play music on the way home either, because I’ve been dealing with stuff all day and just like the peace and clarity.
But if you do like music, there’s lots of ways to get it into your speakers without having to go through CarPlay. Because I’m old I still have a Sirius XM subscription, and I use that in my ’12 Colorado and I have a bluetooth transmitter for my ’06 Jaguar. On the rare occasion I need to nav something the phone is in the cupholder.
I probably sound like a crotchety old man but I just turned 55 and I’m okay with that, but I have a feeling that GM’s system is probably as easy to use as CarPlay is.
It’s not about music for me, it’s podcasts, and they pick up the progress right where I left off as soon as I get into my car that has android auto.
I know folks like to connect their phones to their cars. Not having a phone, the inability to do so doesn’t bother me. But I also know how much people love their phones (if how much time they spend looking at their screens instead of the world around them is anything to go by), so it’s understandable I guess that it’s irksome to have to trade one GUI (on their beloved phone) for another (in a new/er GM vehicle).
By now (2025) I’d have thought that people would have become a bit more platform agnostic, but I guess not.
Well, they will regret it sooner or later.
I remember that my Samsung Galaxy A13 instantly connected to the Android Auto in a rental 2023 Malibu that we used in Boston.
This is like a chinese place taking general tso and beef w/broccoli off the menu.
Why bother?
Mmmmm…. Chinese food. 🙂
I’m interested to see how they think this is going to play out with rental cars. As of now, when I need a rental for a job I get in the car, plug in my phone, say “no you cant have all of my call/text/etc logs” and go. This seems like a return to the bad old days of forcing me to upload my whole damn life into the cars brain if I want to use it at all, and then remembering to delete everything when I return the car.
This is another good point. I don’t even have my contacts loaded into the vehicle that I own. My phone does that stuff fine, thank you, and I don’t need the manufacturer scraping my info.
As far as rentals, it’s been six years since my last rental, but I remember it being able to see a previous user’s entire contacts when I picked it up.
I don’t want any vehicle that requires a Google login, or even runs a Google OS as its OS.
This is such a self-own and I hate it.
I especially hate this because Barra’s initial explanation of this was, “Investors want us to have subscription revenue and we need to collect personal data!” Given my experiences with GM I probably wasn’t gonna buy another car from them anyway but this is another nail in the coffin.
The real pain in the butt is going to be rental cars – I love hopping in a car, plugging my phone in, and having all my familiar stuff come up. Renting a GM is going to be obnoxious now.
I won’t even rent one, let alone buy one.
This is it. There’s nothing else to it but this. Personal data is worth a lot nowadays, GM wants that juicy data to sell you subscription stuff in the future. It needs to know you. CarPlay and AA keep all the data in the device and they’re only glorified screen mirroring so GM is missing out and they know it.